Me and LaCochina

When I was a little girl, my parents had a friend named John and he drove the Humpty Dumpty potato chip truck. I remember thinking this was a pretty cool job since I've always been a huge potato chip fan.
I was in Winnipeg about ten years ago and I went into a little cafe in Osborne Village called Common Ground. It was a wierdly, fantastic little place much like something out of a fairy land. Whenever I'd go to the city, I'd drag my friends there. It was run by the Twelve Tribes Community, there was folk music playing and candles lit every table. The place was dark, candlelit and the tables made from hand hewn logs. It was like a little fairy tale place and I absolutely loved going there. The foods were all natural.
About six years ago, the restaurant moved, downsized and they removed my favourite dish from the regular order. I hear that they have since renovated so when I go to Winnipeg this week plan to try it again for lunch.
I came away with three things from my initial experience: Northern Lites candles, Yerba Maté and LaCochina chips. I didn't know what to order that first time in the restaurant and thought I'd try the nacho plate which is still to this day the best nacho plate I've ever eaten. The chips were thin, crispy and the absolute best. Somehow I discovered they were supplied by a Manitoba company. You may have seen them in the grocery stores - they are packaged in a green and orange bag and are called LaCochina. Since then, they are the only tortilla chips I buy.
When I was at "Touch the Farm" I met the LaCochina man. That's right. The man who owns the company that makes LaCochina chips. He is a chicken producer who has the company right on his farm. I told him how much I love his chips. It was kinda like meeting a rock star. I plan to go there and see how he makes the chips and promise that when I do, I'll take my camera, get some photos and write about it.

What is she thinking?

On my way to town yesterday, I met a cyclist pedalling along the highway in the rain. It was a miserable, cool, soaking afternoon and as I was wondering what motivates a person to go on a cycling trek, I met another cyclist who was lagging at least a mile behind. As I passed by, I recognized that the cyclist was a young woman. This is not the first time I've seen couples biking along the highway, the man way out in front while the woman struggles to keep up.
How much fun is that?
I mean, what is she thinking?
"I'm dying back here. There's no goddamned way I'm helping him set up that friggin' tent. I'm going to pedal right on past him and check into the first motel I see. Next time, he can bring Fat Larry and see how well he keeps up. I should just stop and see how long it takes for him to notice. I'm going to divorce him the minute we get home. No sex for him tonight."
I mean honestly, what woman in her right mind would go on a cycling trip with her husband without a motorized bike? No woman over 40, I'll tell you that much. By the time you hit the Big 4-0 you've gone on hikes, drywalled the basement together, moved a fridge up a flight of stairs and have come to the realization that hey, you're just not as strong as him. Trying to keep up is an exercise in futility, unless of course you're super fit and married to Fat Larry.
The only adventure I'd ever go on with Mark would be a canoe trip. I'd make sure it was with both of us in the same canoe. I'd sit behind him and chat up a storm and then whenever my arms got tired, I'd just stop paddling. It would be great fun. And we wouldn't have to get a divorce afterwards.

In Memoriam

Four years ago today, David Pischke passed away.
I was standing at the kitchen sink when the call came. It was Lynne, David’s wife. She as sobbing uncontrollably and I knew immediately that something was terribly wrong. In the days that followed, many people said that one consolation about his untimely death is that he did not suffer. David died from a massive heart attack in his sleep. He was 56 years old.

The summer he died, little things started happening in my house. Lights would come on, the t.v. would turn off. I’d hear the floor creak in the kitchen, the unmistakable sound of someone walking across the floor. Over the last few years, a pattern has developed in that the noises happen more often in the summertime than in the winter.

Three mornings ago I was awake, trying to decide if I should get up or stay in be a little bit longer. Directly across from our bedroom is Mark’s office. That’s where I do the farm books and the kids are able to use the IBM computer to go on the internet and do homework. I thought that my niece Kassarah had gotten up early to finish her homework, which was very strange because she always does her homework right after school (yes, I know that’s weird but it’s completely true) and is as reluctant as every other teenager in the world to get up in the morning. Besides, it was 3:00 a.m. So I laid there and listened to the sound of someone working at the desk, the keyboard on the computer clicking as if someone was typing. No, this was not a dream. I was wide awake. I got up to check, momentarily thinking that maybe the sound was coming from MY office and that someone was in the process of stealing my laptop. Crazy things go through a person’s mind at 3:00 a.m.
Of course, nobody was there. Nobody ever is.
That afternoon I was folding laundry in the basement, watching Oprah at the same time. Folding laundry (and ironing) are two of the most boring household chores that a person can engage in and I need to watch t.v. while I do this. Anyway, I took Laurie’s pile of clothes and put them in his room, just off the little living room we have in the basement. His bedside lamp was on. It is one that turns on and off by touch. I shut it off, consciously wondering if it would be on again the next morning and it was.

I’m not the only person in the house who hears these noises. The funny thing is that it isn’t frightening at all. Of course there is no way to know if it is David’s spirit or not. Maybe the spirit has always been in the house and we just didn’t notice it before. But thinking it might be a close friend makes it easier to accept, and not at all scary.

When most people think of a spirit in the house it gives them the creeps. We’ve all seen too many haunting movies that are exaggerated to scare the shit out of movie goers. There is no frightening music, no visions of bloody death. The house doesn’t vibrate, we aren’t slammed up against the walls and the noises are not accompanied by an ominous wind or thunderstorm. In fact, footsteps in the hallway would make for a pretty boring movie.

People who don’t believe in ghosts and spirits can find all sorts of ways to explain away these strange happenings. I find this very humorous and have experienced enough that I can’t be convinced otherwise.

And for those of you who are fans of the book “Where Children Run,” you’ll be happy to know that I’m working on getting it reprinted. It’s a job I plan to finish sometime this summer – before life begins to get hectic again in the fall.

Maybe that’s what all the clicking on the keyboard was about. David or somebody else trying to tell me that it was time to get up and start writing.

Save the little school

I just found out that Teresa Johnson will be presenting tomorrow morning at 10:00 a.m. in the Manitoba Legislature to the Standing Committee on Education. She is asking that Bill 28 be amended so that the Ashern and Fisher Branch Early years schools be included in the moratorium on school closures. Currently the Bill reads that only school closure decisions made after January 1, 2008 need approval by the Minister before school divisions can proceed and shut down a school. Since the Lakeshore decision was made last year in June, our two schools are not protected by the Bill. She is asking that the January 1, 2008 date be removed from the Bill.

Good luck, Teresa. I know you'll do a great job.

Book Launch

If you're going to be in Winnipeg on Tuesday June 10th, consider attending the launch of "Jewell Adventure," by Gilbert Hofer. The launch will be held at McNally Robinson Booksellers at 7:00 p.m. (Grant Park).

Jewell Adventure is the first English language children's book written by a Hutterite author and published by the Hutterite Brethren Book Centre. Gilbert will read from his book and sign copies. Publisher Kenny Wollmann says: "There will be food . . . cold cuts, cheese and Hutterite dainties. Go for the food if nothing else!"

About Jewell Adventure: Many Hutterite boys dream of riding to the nehbours on forbidden bikes. What adventures will Gilbert and his friends have when they decide to take the trip and what will happen to them if they are caught?

"Gilbert Hofer's enchanting and ground breaking tale of young Hutterite boys on a day's adventure, combined with wonderful illustrations by Victor Kleinsasser, is a must read for any one interested in children's literature and Hutterite life"
- Joe McLellan, co-author of Goose Girl and the Nanabosho Series

When the internet goes down

Did I mention that our internet tower got hit by lightening?
This has completely messed up my routine and frustrated my blogging efforts.
Thanks to everyone who keeps checking back to see my next post. I promise I'll have something for you to read very soon.